Three-dimensional space interface apparatus and method

ABSTRACT

A three-dimensional (3D) space interface apparatus and method are provided. The 3D space interface apparatus provides an interface in which a user may directly touch and transform a 3D virtual object of a 3D space, which is shown in various ways depending on a position of the user. The 3D space interface apparatus may provide for manipulation of the 3D virtual object by the user using a sensing signal that senses the position and movement of a manipulation object the user. Specifically, an interface unit of the apparatus verifies, using the sensing signal, whether a predetermined movement of the manipulation object has occurred or whether a contact between the 3D virtual object and the manipulation object has been made, and generates a predetermined reaction corresponding to the predetermined movement or the contact.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.12/923,932 filed on Oct. 14, 2010, and claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C§119(a) of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2009-0102228, filed on Oct.27, 2009, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure ofwhich is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

1. Field

Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an interface,and more particularly, to a three-dimensional (3D) space interfaceapparatus and method that may manipulate a 3D virtual object displayedthrough a 3D display using motions of a user in a 3D space and directcontact between the user and the 3D virtual object.

2. Description of the Related Art

In an information processing system or an information control systemsuch as a computer and the like, user input and output apparatuses maybe used for a user interface. As a user input apparatus, a keyboard, amouse, a touch screen, and the like may be widely used, and as a useroutput apparatus, a monitor screen, a printer, and the like may bewidely used.

The input apparatus, such as a conventional mouse and the like, maysupport only two-dimensional (2D) user input. Specifically, the userinput performed by the user input apparatus may be sensed or detected bydividing the user input into an input of an X-axis direction, that is, areference axis on a plane and an input of a Y-axis directionperpendicular to the X-axis. Also, a conventional graphic screenexcluding a specific application field may be configured focusing on the2D user output.

However, along with developments in techniques, a three-dimensional (3D)display apparatus and various input apparatuses have been developed andprovided. Currently, various interface methods that may manipulate avirtual object displayed through a 2D display using the hands of a userhave been suggested.

Particularly, a screen touch technique is gaining much attention. In thescreen touch technique, a user's request such as a request to directlymanipulate a 3D object using the user's own hands may be reflected.However, an interface using the screen touch technique may not provide asensation of directly manipulating the 3D object to the user, but mayinstead merely provide a sensation of touching and manipulating a 2Dobject within a screen.

SUMMARY

According to an aspect of exemplary embodiments of the presentdisclosure, there is provided a three-dimensional (3D) space interfaceapparatus, including: a 3D display unit to output a 3D virtual object; asensing unit to generate a sensing signal for sensing a position and amovement of a user and for sensing a position and a movement of amanipulation object manipulating the 3D virtual object; and an interfaceunit to verify, using the sensing signal, whether a predeterminedmovement of the manipulation object is created or whether a contactbetween the 3D virtual object and the manipulation object is created,and to generate a predetermined reaction corresponding to thepredetermined movement or the contact.

In this instance, the sensing unit may be at least one of a colorcamera, a depth camera, and a motion sensor.

Also, the interface unit may include: a space determination unit todetermine a rendering space where the 3D virtual object is output and asensing space where a manipulation of the 3D virtual object is sensed,using the sensing signal; a 3D rending unit to 3D-render the 3D virtualobject in accordance with the position of the user to output therendered 3D virtual object in the rendering space; a manipulationobject-detection unit to detect the manipulation object positioned inthe sensing space using the sensing signal and to trace a movement ofthe manipulation object; a contact sensing unit to sense where a contactbetween the manipulation object and the 3D virtual object is created; amotion recognition unit to trace the movement of the manipulation objectto verify whether the predetermined movement is generated; and areaction generation unit to generate the predetermined reactioncorresponding to the predetermined movement or the contact.

Also, the space determination unit may trace the position of the userand a face of the user using the sensing signal, determine, as therendering space, an entire space between a 3D display unit and a userface, and determine, as the sensing space, a predetermined sized spacebetween the 3D display unit and the user face.

Also, the manipulation object-detection unit may detect, as themanipulation object, hands of the user within the sensing space, a bodyof the user within the sensing space, and an object within the sensingspace.

Also, the contact sensing unit may correct a distortion of the renderingand sensing spaces, each space varying depending on the position of theuser, aggregate the corrected rendering and sensing spaces, and verifywhether a contact between the 3D virtual object output in the correctedrendering space and the manipulation object detected in the correctedsensing space is created.

Also, the predetermined reaction corresponding to the predeterminedmovement and the contact may be at least one of a transformationexpanding or compressing the 3D virtual object, a rotation of the 3Dvirtual object, a movement of the 3D virtual object, a selection of aportion of the 3D virtual object where the contact is created, aperformance of a predetermined command corresponding to thepredetermined movement or the contact, a creation of a new 3D virtualobject, and a removal of the 3D virtual object.

Also, the reaction generation unit may further include an ultrasonicwave- generation unit to generate a contact signal enabling a contactsensation by sending ultrasonic waves to the contacted manipulationobject when the contact is created.

According to another aspect of exemplary embodiments, there is provideda 3D space interface method, including: generating a sensing signal forsensing a position and a movement of a user and for sensing a positionand a movement of a manipulation object manipulating the 3D virtualobject; interfacing including outputting the 3D virtual object,verifying, using the sensing signal, whether a predetermined movement ofthe manipulation object is created or whether a contact between the 3Dvirtual object and the manipulation object is created, and generating apredetermined reaction corresponding to the predetermined movement andthe contact; and outputting the 3D virtual object where the generatedreaction is applied.

In this instance, the sensing signal may be generated by at least one ofa color camera, a depth camera, and a motion sensor.

Also, the interfacing may include: determining a rendering space wherethe 3D virtual object is output and a sensing space where a manipulationof the 3D virtual object is sensed, using the sensing signal;3D-rendering the 3D virtual object in accordance with the position ofthe user to output the rendered 3D virtual object in the renderingspace; detecting the manipulation object positioned in the sensing spaceusing the sensing signal and tracing a movement of the manipulationobject; sensing whether the contact between the manipulation object andthe 3D virtual object is created; verifying whether the predeterminedmovement of the manipulation object is created by tracing the movementof the manipulation object; and generating the predetermined reactioncorresponding to the predetermined movement and the contact.

Also, the determining of the rendering space and the sensing space mayinclude: tracing the position of the user and a face of the user usingthe sensing signal; determining, as the rendering space, an entire spacebetween a 3D display unit and a user face; and determining, as thesensing space, a predetermined sized space between the 3D display unitand the user face.

Also, the object of the manipulation object may be detected, as themanipulation object, hands of the user within the sensing space, a bodyof the user within the sensing space, and an object within the sensingspace.

Also, the sensing of whether the contact is created may include:correcting a distortion of the rendering and sensing spaces varyingdepending on the position of the user; and aggregating the correctedrendering and sensing spaces to verify whether a contact between the 3Dvirtual object output in the corrected rendering space and themanipulation object detected in the corrected sensing space is created.

Also, the predetermined reaction corresponding to the predeterminedmovement and the contact may be at least one of a transformation ofexpanding or compressing the 3D virtual object, a rotation of the 3Dvirtual object, a movement of the 3D virtual object, a selection of aportion of the 3D virtual object where the contact is created, aperformance of a predetermined command corresponding to thepredetermined movement or the contact, a creation of a new 3D virtualobject, and a removal of the 3D virtual object.

Also, the 3D space interface method may further include sendingultrasonic waves to the contacted manipulation object when the contactis created to generate a contact signal enabling a contact sensation.

According to another aspect of exemplary embodiments, an apparatus forinterfacing with a rendered three-dimensional (3D) virtual object in a3D space is provided. The apparatus includes a sensing unit to generatea sensing signal for tracking a position and a movement of amanipulation object of a user in a sensing space of the 3D virtualobject, an interface unit to verify, using the sensing signal, whether apredetermined movement of the manipulation object with respect to the 3Dobject has occurred in the sensing space, and a reaction generation unitto generate a predetermined reaction corresponding to the predeterminedmovement and to output the predetermined reaction such that it may beperceived by the user.

According to another aspect of exemplary embodiments, a method forinterfacing with a rendered three-dimensional (3D) virtual object in a3D space is provided. The method includes generating a sensing signal totrack a position and a movement of a manipulation object of a user in asensing space of the 3D virtual object, verifying, using the sensingsignal, whether a predetermined movement of the manipulation object withrespect to the 3D object has occurred in the sensing space, andgenerating a predetermined reaction corresponding to the predeterminedmovement and outputting the predetermined reaction such that it may beperceived by the user.

Additional aspects, features, and/or advantages of embodiments will beset forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will beapparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of thedisclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and/or other aspects will become apparent and more readilyappreciated from the following description of exemplary embodiments,taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of an operation of a three-dimensional(3D) space interface apparatus according to exemplary embodiments;

FIG. 2 illustrates a configuration of a 3D space interface apparatusaccording to exemplary embodiments;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a 3D space interface processaccording to exemplary embodiments;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a process of determining a space fora 3D space interface according to exemplary embodiments; and

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a process of verifying a contact witha 3D virtual object for a 3D space interface according to exemplaryembodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made in detail to exemplary embodiments, examplesof which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein likereference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. Exemplaryembodiments are described below to explain the present disclosure byreferring to the figures.

Exemplary embodiments relate to a three-dimensional (3D) space interfaceapparatus and method that may directly touch and transform a virtualobject in a 3D space by sensing motions of a user. In this instance, thevirtual object may be differently shown depending on a position of theuser.

The 3D space interface apparatus may provide a manipulation of a 3Dvirtual object using a user's body or using one or more individual bodyparts of the user. In particular, the 3D space interface apparatus maytrace a position of the user to reduce an error that may occur due tocontact between the 3D virtual object and the user.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of an operation of a three-dimensional(3D) space interface apparatus according to exemplary embodiments.Referring to FIG. 1, the 3D space interface apparatus includes a sensingunit 110, an interface unit 120, and a 3D display unit 130.

The sensing unit 110 may generate a sensing signal for sensing aposition and a movement of a user 140 and for sensing a position and amovement of a manipulation object 150, e.g., a user's hand or finger,manipulating a 3D virtual object 160. The sensing unit 110 may include,for example, a color camera, a depth camera, and a motion sensor.Accordingly, the sensing signal may be one of a color image, a depthimage measuring a distance from an object, a motion of the user, and thelike.

The 3D display unit 130 may output the 3D virtual object 160 as a 3Dimage in a direction of the user 140 in accordance with a control of theinterface unit 120.

The interface unit 120 may verify, using the sensing signal, whether apredetermined movement of the manipulation object has occurred orwhether contact has occurred between the 3D virtual object and themanipulation object, and generate a predetermined reaction correspondingto the predetermined movement or the contact to thereby apply thegenerated reaction to the 3D virtual object 160.

FIG. 2 illustrates a configuration of a 3D space interface apparatusaccording to exemplary embodiments. Referring to FIG. 2, the interfaceunit 120 of the 3D space interface apparatus may include a spacedetermination unit 210, a 3D rendering unit 220, a manipulationobject-detection unit 230, a contact sensing unit 240, a motionrecognition unit 250, and a reaction generation unit 260.

The space determination unit 210 may determine, using the sensingsignal, a rendering space where the 3D virtual object is output and asensing space where a manipulation of the 3D virtual object is sensed.

The space determination unit 210 may trace a position and a face of theuser using the sensing signal. The space determination unit 210 maydetermine, as the rendering space, an entire space between a 3D displayplane and a user face, and determine, as the sensing space, apredetermined sized space between the 3D display plane and the userface. For example, in an embodiment the sensing space occupies apredetermined portion of the rendering space. The space determinationunit 210 may determine a sensing resolution signifying a number of timesthe manipulation object is sensed per hour in the sensing space. Thesensing resolution may be determined based on accuracy of the sensingsignal of the sensing unit 110, or may be predetermined.

The 3D rendering unit 220 may receive the 3D virtual object, 3D-renderthe received 3D virtual object depending on a position of the user, andoutput the 3D-rendered 3D virtual object in the rendering spacedetermined by the space determination unit 210. The 3D rendering unit220 may 3D-render the 3D virtual object at a location where the reactiongenerated in the reaction generation unit 260 has been applied, andoutput the 3D-rendered 3D virtual object in the rendering space.

The manipulation object-detection unit 230 may detect, using the sensingsignal, the manipulation object, that is, an object manipulating the 3Dvirtual object in the sensing space, and may trace the manipulationobject. The manipulation object may be a part of the body of the user,such as a hand or finger, or an object that is positioned in the sensingspace, such as a pointing device. Specifically, the manipulationobject-detection unit 230 may detect, as the manipulation object, handsof the user within the sensing space, a body of the user within thesensing space, and an object within the sensing space, and trace amovement of the manipulation object.

The contact sensing unit 240 may sense whether contact has occurredbetween the manipulation object and the 3D virtual object. The contactsensing unit 240 may correct a distortion of the rendering space and thesensing space, which may each vary depending on the position of theuser, and may aggregate the corrected rendering space and the correctedsensing space. The contact sensing unit 240 may further verify whethercontact between the 3D virtual object output in the corrected renderingspace and the manipulation object detected in the corrected sensingspace has occurred.

The motion recognition unit 250 may trace the movement of themanipulation object to verify whether the predetermined movement of themanipulation object has occurred. The motion recognition unit 250 maydivide, in real time, a movement of the manipulation object including aspeed, a direction, a shape, a size, a position, and the like, andcompare the divided movement and the stored predetermined movement ofthe manipulation object to thereby recognize whether the predeterminedmovement of the manipulation object has occurred.

The reaction generation unit 260 may generate a predetermined reactioncorresponding to the predetermined movement or to the contact betweenthe 3D virtual object and the manipulation object. The predeterminedreaction corresponding to the contact may be a transformation expandingor compressing the 3D virtual object, changing a color, texture, oropacity of the 3D virtual object, or a rotation or a movement of the 3Dvirtual object. Also, the predetermined reaction corresponding to thepredetermined movement may include generation of a new 3D virtual objector removal of the output 3D virtual object. Still further, thepredetermined reaction may include a selection of a portion of the 3Dvirtual object where the contact has occurred, or a performance of apredetermined command corresponding to the predetermined movement or thecontact.

Also, to provide a sensation of contact to the user or to themanipulation object in the area where contact between the manipulationobject and the 3D virtual object has occurred, the reaction generationunit 260 may generate a contact signal enabling a contact sensation, forexample, by sending ultrasonic waves to the manipulation object throughan ultrasonic wave-generation unit (not illustrated).

Hereinafter, a 3D space interface method of the 3D space interfaceapparatus having the above described configuration will be described indetail with reference to FIG. 3.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a 3D space interface processaccording to exemplary embodiments. Referring to FIG. 3, in operation310, the interface unit 120 of the 3D space interface apparatus mayreceive a sensing signal for detecting a user and the manipulationobject using the sensing unit.

In operation 312, the interface unit 120 may determine, using thesensing signal, a rendering space where the 3D virtual object is o and asensing space where a manipulation of the 3D virtual object is sensed.The determining of the rendering space and the sensing space will befurther described with reference to FIG. 4.

In operation 314, the interface unit 120 may receive the 3D virtualobject, 3D-render the received 3D virtual object depending on a positionof the user, and output the 3D-rendered 3D virtual object in therendering space.

In operation 316, the interface unit 120 may detect, using the sensingsignal, the manipulation object, that is, an object manipulating the 3Dvirtual object in the sensing space, and trace the manipulation object.In this instance, the manipulation object may be a part of a body of theuser or an object, which is located in the sensing space.

In operation 318, the interface unit 120 may verify whether apredetermined movement of the manipulation object has occurred orwhether contact has been made between the manipulation object and the 3Dvirtual object. Whether contact between the manipulation object and the3D virtual object has been made will be further described in detail withreference to FIG. 5.

When the predetermined movement has not occurred or when the contact hasnot been made, based on a verified result of operation 318, theinterface unit 120 may return to operation 310 and repeatedly performoperations 310 to 318.

When the predetermined movement is created or when the contact iscreated based on the verified result of operation 318, the interfaceunit 120 may advance to operation 320, and generate a predeterminedreaction corresponding to the predetermined movement or the contact.

The predetermined reaction corresponding to the contact may be atransformation expanding or compressing the 3D virtual object, or arotation or a movement of the 3D virtual object. Also, the predeterminedreaction corresponding to the predetermined movement may be a generationof a new 3D virtual object or a removal of the output 3D virtual object.Various reactions other than the above described reactions may begenerated.

In operation 322, the interface unit 120 may 3D-render the 3D virtualobject where the reaction generated in operation 322 is applied, andoutput the 3D-rendered 3D virtual object in the rendering space.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a process of determining a space fora 3D space interface according to exemplary embodiments. Referring toFIG. 4, when receiving the sensing signal from the sensing unit inoperation 410, the space determination unit 210 of the 3D spaceinterface apparatus may trace a position and a face of the user usingthe sensing signal in operation 412.

In operation 414, the space determination unit 210 may determine, as therendering space, an entire space between the 3D display plane and theuser face.

In operation 416, the space determination unit 210 may determine, as thesensing space, a predetermined sized space between the 3D display planeand the user face.

In operation 418, the space determination unit 210 may determine asensing resolution signifying a number of times the manipulation objectis sensed per hour in the sensing space. In this instance, the sensingresolution may be determined based on accuracy of the sensing signal ofthe sensing unit 110, or may be predetermined.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a process of verifying a contact witha 3D virtual object for a 3D space interface according to exemplaryembodiments. Referring to FIG. 5, in operation 510, the contact sensingunit 240 of the 3D space interface apparatus may correct a distortion ofthe rendering space and the sensing space, which may each vary dependingon a position of the user, in order to sense contact between themanipulation object and the 3D virtual object. In operation 512, thecontact sensing unit 240 may aggregate the corrected rendering space andthe corrected sensing space. In operation 514, the contact sensing unit240 may verify whether contact has been made between the 3D virtualobject output in the rendering space and the manipulation objectdetected in the sensing space.

As described above, according to exemplary embodiments, the 3D spaceinterface apparatus and method may provide an interface through amovement of the user or through a direct contact between a body of theuser and the 3D virtual object by matching the rendering space where the3D virtual object is output with the sensing space where a movement ofthe user is sensed. Also, according to exemplary embodiments, the 3Dspace interface apparatus and method may reduce an error occurring by aposition movement of the user by tracing the user or changing thesensing space and the rendering space depending on the position of theuser.

The above described methods may be recorded, stored, or fixed in one ormore computer-readable storage media that include program instructionsto be implemented by a computer to cause a processor to execute orperform the program instructions. The media may also include, alone orin combination with the program instructions, data files, datastructures, and the like. The media and program instructions may bethose specially designed and constructed, or they may be of the kindwell-known and available to those having skill in the computer softwarearts. Examples of computer-readable media include magnetic media such ashard disks, floppy disks, and magnetic tape; optical media such as CDROM disks and DVDs; magneto-optical media such as optical disks; andhardware devices that are specially configured to store and performprogram instructions, such as read-only memory (ROM), random accessmemory (RAM), flash memory, and the like. The computer-readable mediamay also be a distributed network, so that the program instructions arestored and executed in a distributed fashion. The program instructionsmay be executed by one or more processors. The computer-readable mediamay also be embodied in at least one application specific integratedcircuit (ASIC) or Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), which executes(processes like a processor) program instructions. Examples of programinstructions include both machine code, such as produced by a compiler,and files containing higher level code that may be executed by thecomputer using an interpreter.

The described hardware devices may be configured to act as one or moresoftware modules in order to perform the operations and methodsdescribed above, or vice versa. The instructions may be executed on anyprocessor, general purpose computer, or special purpose computer such asa 3D space interface apparatus. Further, the software modules may becontrolled by any processor. In addition, in some embodiments acomputer-readable storage medium may be distributed among computersystems connected through a network and computer-readable codes orprogram instructions may be stored and executed in a decentralizedmanner.

Although a few exemplary embodiments have been shown and described, itwould be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may bemade in these exemplary embodiments without departing from theprinciples and spirit of the disclosure, the scope of which is definedin the claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A three-dimensional (3D) space interfaceapparatus comprising: a processor configured to control one or moreprocessor-executable units; a 3D display unit configured to output a 3Dvirtual object; a sensing generator, including at least one processor,configured to generate a sensing signal for sensing a position and amovement of a manipulation object; a space determiner, including the atleast one processor, configured to determine: a rendering space locatedbetween the 3D display unit and the user, in which the 3D virtual objectwill be outputted, and a sensing space occupying a predetermined portionof the rendering space, in which the manipulation object will be sensed;and an interface, including the at least one processor, configured toverify, using the sensing signal, whether a contact between the 3Dvirtual object and the manipulation object has been made, and togenerate a predetermined reaction corresponding to the contact when thecontact has been verified as being made, wherein the interface correctsa distortion of the rendering space and the sensing space, each spacevarying depending on a position of the user, aggregates the correctedrendering space and the corrected sensing space, and verifies whetherthe contact has been made between the 3D virtual object output in thecorrected rendering space and the manipulation object in the correctedsensing space.
 2. The 3D space interface apparatus of claim 1, whereinthe sensing generator comprises at least one of a color camera, a depthcamera, and a motion sensor.
 3. The 3D space interface apparatus ofclaim 1, wherein the interface comprises: a 3D renderer, including theat least one processor, configured to 3D-render the 3D virtual object inaccordance with the position of the user to output the rendered 3Dvirtual object in the rendering space; a manipulation object detectorconfigured to detect the manipulation object positioned in the sensingspace using the sensing signal and to trace a movement of themanipulation object; a contact sensor configured to sense whethercontact between the manipulation object and the 3D virtual object hasbeen made; a motion recognizer, including the at least one processor,configured to trace movement of the manipulation object to verifywhether a predetermined movement of the manipulation object hasoccurred; and a reaction generator, including the at least oneprocessor, configured to generate the predetermined reactioncorresponding to one or more of the predetermined movement and thecontact.
 4. The 3D space interface apparatus of claim 3, wherein thespace determiner traces the position of the user and a face of the userusing the sensing signal, determines, as the rendering space, an entirespace between a 3D display unit and the face of the user, anddetermines, as the sensing space, a predetermined sized space betweenthe 3D display unit and the face of the user.
 5. The 3D space interfaceapparatus of claim 3, wherein the manipulation object detector detects,as the manipulation object, any one or more of hands of the user withinthe sensing space, a body of the user within the sensing space, and anobject within the sensing space.
 6. The 3D space interface apparatus ofclaim 3, wherein the predetermined reaction corresponding to thepredetermined movement and the contact is at least one of atransformation expanding or compressing the 3D virtual object, arotation of the 3D virtual object, a movement of the 3D virtual object,a selection of a portion of the 3D virtual object where the contact hasbeen made, a performance of a predetermined command corresponding to thepredetermined movement or the contact, a creation of a new 3D virtualobject, and a removal of the 3D virtual object.
 7. The 3D spaceinterface apparatus of claim 3, wherein the reaction generator furtherincludes an ultrasonic wave generator configured to generate a contactsignal enabling a contact sensation by sending ultrasonic waves to themanipulation object when contact has been made with the 3D virtualobject.
 8. A 3D space interface method for interfacing with a 3D virtualobject, the method comprising: generating a sensing signal for sensing aposition and a movement of a manipulation object; determining arendering space located between a 3D display unit and the user, in whichthe 3D virtual object will be outputted; determining a sensing spaceoccupying a predetermined portion of the rendering space, in which themanipulation object will be sensed; verifying, using the sensing signal,whether a contact between the 3D virtual object and the manipulationobject has been made; and generating a predetermined reactioncorresponding to the contact when the contact has been verified as beingmade, wherein the verifying includes: correcting a distortion of therendering space and the sensing space varying depending on a position ofa user; and aggregating the corrected rendering space and the correctedsensing space to verify whether the contact between the 3D virtualobject in the corrected rendering space and the manipulation object inthe corrected sensing space has been made.
 9. The 3D space interfacemethod of claim 8, wherein the sensing signal is generated by at leastone of a color camera, a depth camera, and a motion sensor.
 10. The 3Dspace interface method of claim 8, wherein the interfacing includes:3D-rendering the 3D virtual object in accordance with the position ofthe user to output the rendered 3D virtual object in the renderingspace; detecting the manipulation object positioned in the sensing spaceusing the sensing signal and tracing a movement of the manipulationobject; sensing whether contact between the manipulation object and the3D virtual object has been made; verifying whether a predeterminedmovement of the manipulation object has occurred by tracing movement ofthe manipulation object; and generating the predetermined reactioncorresponding to one or more of the predetermined movement and thecontact.
 11. The 3D space interface method of claim 8, wherein thedetermining of the rendering space and the sensing space includes:determining, as the rendering space, an entire space between a 3Ddisplay unit and a face of the user.
 12. The 3D space interface methodof claim 10, wherein the object of the manipulation object detects, asthe manipulation object, any one or more of hands of the user within thesensing space, a body of the user within the sensing space, and anobject within the sensing space.
 13. The 3D space interface method ofclaim 10, wherein the predetermined reaction corresponding to thepredetermined movement and the contact is at least one of atransformation expanding or compressing the 3D virtual object, arotation of the 3D virtual object, a movement of the 3D virtual object,a selection of a portion of the 3D virtual object where the contact hasbeen made, a performance of a predetermined command corresponding to thepredetermined movement or the contact, a creation of a new 3D virtualobject, and a removal of the 3D virtual object.
 14. The 3D spaceinterface method of claim 10, further comprising: sending ultrasonicwaves to the manipulation object when contact has been made with the 3Dvirtual object to generate a contact signal enabling a contactsensation.
 15. An apparatus for interfacing with a renderedthree-dimensional (3D) virtual object in a 3D space, the apparatuscomprising: a processor configured to control one or moreprocessor-executable units; a sensing generator, including at least oneprocessor, configured to generate a sensing signal for tracking aposition and a movement of a manipulation object of a user in a sensingspace of the 3D virtual object; a space determiner, including at leastone processor, configured to determine: a rendering space locatedbetween a 3D display unit and the user, in which the 3D virtual objectwill be outputted, and a sensing space occupying a predetermined portionof the rendering space, in which the manipulation object will be sensed;an interface, including at least one processor, configured to verify,using the sensing signal, whether a predetermined movement of themanipulation object that results in contact between the manipulationobject and the 3D object has occurred in the sensing space; and areaction generator, including at least one processor, configured togenerate a predetermined reaction corresponding to the predeterminedmovement and to output the predetermined reaction such that it may beperceived by the user when the contact has been verified by theinterface unit, wherein the interface corrects a distortion of therendering space and the sensing space, each space varying depending on aposition of a user, aggregates the corrected rendering space and thecorrected sensing space, and verifies whether the contact has been madebetween the 3D virtual object in the corrected rendering space and themanipulation object in the corrected sensing space.
 16. The apparatus ofclaim 15, wherein the reaction generator further includes an ultrasonicwave-generation unit to generate a contact signal enabling the user toperceive a contact sensation by sending ultrasonic waves to themanipulation object when contact has been made with the 3D virtualobject.
 17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the reaction generatoralters an appearance of the 3D virtual object in response to thepredetermined movement.
 18. The 3D space interface apparatus of claim15, wherein, in response to the predetermined movement, the reactiongenerator performs at least one of: a transformation expanding orcompressing the 3D virtual object, a rotation of the 3D virtual object,a movement of the 3D virtual object, a selection of a portion of the 3Dvirtual object where the contact has been made, a performance of apredetermined command corresponding to the predetermined movement or thecontact, a creation of a new 3D virtual object, and a removal of the 3Dvirtual object.
 19. A method for interfacing with a renderedthree-dimensional (3D) virtual object in a 3D space, The generatingmethod comprising: generating a sensing signal to track a position and amovement of a manipulation object of a user in a sensing space of the 3Dvirtual object; determining a rendering space located between a 3Ddisplay unit and the user, in which the 3D virtual object will beoutputted; determining a sensing space occupying a predetermined portionof the rendering space, in which the manipulation object will be sensed;verifying, using the sensing signal, whether a predetermined movement ofthe manipulation object that results in contact between the manipulationobject and the 3D object has occurred in the sensing space; andgenerating a predetermined reaction corresponding to the predeterminedmovement and outputting the predetermined reaction such that it may beperceived by the user when the contact has been verified, wherein theverifying includes: correcting a distortion of the rendering space andthe sensing space varying depending on a position of a user; andaggregating the corrected rendering space and the corrected sensingspace to verify whether the contact between the 3D virtual object in thecorrected rendering space and the manipulation object in the correctedsensing space has been made.
 20. The method of claim 19, furthercomprising: generating a contact signal enabling the user to perceive acontact sensation by sending ultrasonic waves to the manipulation objectwhen contact has been made with the 3D virtual object.
 21. Anon-transitory computer-readable storage medium encoded with computerreadable code comprising a program for implementing the method of claim19.